Lily: A journey through Hogwarts
by toenailclipping
Summary: This is my take on Lily's Hogwarts years, starting with the letter. Sure to be packed with humor and drama, and obviously romance at the end. Rated for language and later chapters! R&R!


A/n: Hello! Some of you may know me from my other stories, but perhaps your new, either way, this is something that I've wanted to do for a long while. I've been flirting with the idea of writing Lily's entire Hogwarts career out, to give my version of events and such. I hope that you all like my story, and that you can find the time to review. Um, I intend to pull this through her seven years, and probably up to her very death (sad I know, but the death will be in a later story, so if you like a happy ending, you can end with the Hogwarts years.) I don't know how I am going to break this up (as in a new story for every year, or perhaps all of Hogwarts years in one story… that remains to be seen. Well, as I said, enjoy, and please review, I always comment back to all of my reviewers, so if you have questions or just comments, I'll respond! Thank you!

_**Aimee Kaye**_

_**Lily: A Hogwarts tale**_

_**Chapter one**_

_**Acceptance**_

The alarm erupted in Lily's ear, causing her head to ache. Morning already, and that meant that she'd have to leave the warmth that was her bed, and succumb to the brutality of her cold hardwood floor. Poking her disheveled head from beneath her pink comforter she looked around on the floor for her slippers, and found them, across the room. _Figures_, she thought glumly as she prepared herself to the plunge of icy terror. That's what she hated most about her house, no one believed in having the temperature above fifty degrees. Silently cursing her cold loving family she decided that she'd better get it over with now, lest Petunia have to come in to get her. Ever so slowly she reached one foot to the ground, coaxing it with the false hope that Louie, her cat, had lain in that very spots moment before and warmed it a bit. As soon as she made contact, she knew that Louie had done no such thing. With great difficulty she forced her foot to stay put, and not to recoil back into it's warm cocoon of blankets.

It took her a good five minutes to pick her way from the bed, but as soon as that was accomplished, the rest went with quick procession as he feet darted to be rescued from the frigid ground. By the time she was slipping her feet into her slippers, her door was thrown open, and in stormed her sister, Petunia.

"Lily!" She sneered. "You'd better come on! We've got to go get Dad from the station, he's home today! We don't have time for this!" Petunia gave Lily a very nasty look indeed before slamming the door.

Lily rolled her eyes, letting her mind linger for just a moment on the pure hatred that engulfed their sisterly relationship. Then she remembered, today was the day that Dad was coming home! He was done with commuting season and now he'd be home for all of the summer to be with her. This sparked a new desire in her to get ready quickly. With lightening speed she slipped into the new white cotton dress that Mummy had purchased for the event, and skidded down the hall to the bathroom. It was locked, and Lily could hear Petunia clanking around in there, and probably would be for the rest of the morning. Lily gave the door a few pounds with her fist before giving up and stomping off to the kitchen where her mother was standing at the stove, cooking breakfast.

"What's wrong Lily, darling?" Her mother asked her as she scooped two pancakes onto her plate.

"Nothing mummy. I just wanted to brush my teeth and hair, but Petunia's in the bathroom." Lily said dejectedly as she poured blueberry syrup over her food.

"Now, sweetheart, she'll be out soon, then you can get ready dear."

"You know how she is, she'll be in there until it's time to go, then I'll only be able to run the brush through my hair quickly and be on my way!" Lily didn't mean to whine, but it always came out that way when she was talking to her mother. Never sensible, because whining always got her way.

"How about this, you can wear my pearl barrette for your hair, then you'll look lovely. I'll go get it for you and I'll fix your hair for you." Mrs. Evans smiled at her youngest daughter and hurried off out of the kitchen in the direction of her bedroom.

Lily smiled to herself. That would just drive Petunia mad! She loved that pearl barrette, and her mother would never let her wear it, and Lily could hardly wait to see her face when she saw it in her hair. It was mean, and it was juvenile, but it was war, and all things must be taken as fair. Lily quickly stifled the giggle that was rising in her throat when her mother walked back into the kitchen, carrying the barrette and a comb.

"Are your pancakes alright dear?" Mrs. Evans asked as she started teasing Lily's limp, straight hair into the barrette.

"Simply wonderful Mummy. Ouch!" She winced as the comb snagged on a tangle of hair.

"Sorry dear, I'll try to be more careful." She said gently, "I forgot how like mine your hair is. Thick, red and easily tangled!"

Lily smiled. She'd heard it all of her life, that she looked just like her mother. Everything was nearly identical except for the eyes, her eyes were a startling green that she'd gotten from her father. Truth told, she was glad that that was all she'd gotten from him. He was a handsome man, but Petunia, who took after him, was bony and horse faced, and Lily wouldn't like that very much.

"There!" Mrs. Evans finally said after another moment of plucking and pulling at Lily's hair. "Oh, you look lovely with that in your hair!"

"Thanks, Mummy!" Lily smiled and shoveled more pancakes into her mouth.

"Mum! Have you seen my dangling heart—" Petunia stopped mid-sentence, and Lily grinned broadly, how quickly she'd noticed.

"What dear? Here, eat up, the cab should be here soon!" Mrs. Evans smiled and handed Petunia a plate.

Petunia slammed the plate onto the table and glared at Lily. "Mum! Why is Lily wearing your barrette?"

"Because, dear, you were in the bathroom and she needed to get ready."

"Yes, but I always ask, and you never let me!" Petunia whined.

"Well, Petunia, perhaps if you wouldn't have been in the bathroom, and Lily'd gotten there first, you'd be wearing it now!" Mrs. Evans told her matter of factly. "Now, what were you looking for?"

"That stupid… she gets her way every time!" Petunia whined, her voice raising in volume with ever syllable.

"That's not true dear, and you know it! Now, either tell me what you were looking for, or eat up!"

Petunia sighed heavily, "My dangling heart earrings."

"No dear I haven't seen them."

"They're on your dresser." Lily said between mouthfuls of food.

"And how do _you _know?" Petunia sneered, narrowing her eyes at Lily.

"Because, I borrowed them last week!" Lily smiled at her sweetly.

"Argh! See! She does what ever she wants!" Petunia exploded. "You just stay out of my room, you little brat!" She shouted as she stormed out of the kitchen.

Mrs. Evans sighed. "She is so unhappy. I don't understand it, she gets no less that you do."

"Mum, she's just upset because she and Vernon got into a fight last night." Lily reassured her gently.

"Vernon, isn't he that young man she's been seeing? I told her she shouldn't waste her time, he just seems to uptight. Besides, she's only sixteen, she shouldn't be worried about boys yet! I didn't meet your father until I was nineteen!"

"I know mummy, but Petunia doesn't always do things the way she should."

"Yes, well you should ask her if you can borrow her things next time, dear."

"Yes Mummy."

Lily smiled. Another battle won.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

The Kings cross station was rather crowded with vacationers and young college students going home for the summer, and Lily found it all a bit over bearing. It took them twenty minutes to get from the entrance to platform ten where her father would be meeting them. The station wasn't just crowded with the normal sort either, but with the most unusual kind. Lily could have sword that two kids around Petunia's age walked right out of the barrier between platforms nine and ten as she was about to walk by. But she'd just shaken her head and kept walking, knowing that such things never happened.

When they finally got to the station, Lily scanned the crowd frantically, looking for the tall, slender build that was her father.

"Oh dear." Mrs. Evans sighed, indicating the train schedule bulletin. "Your father's trains been delayed, it won't be here for another five minutes."

Lily stopped searching and plopped down on a bench beside her mother. The group of teenagers that Lily'd seen 'appear' out of the barrier walked by her, staring and whispering, causing the younger girl to squirm self consciously, and her sister to snort.

"Weirdoes!" Petunia spat after them. "Lookit, they're just walking around, that ones even in some fancy sort of robe!"

"Actually, robes can be rather becoming."

Lily looked up to see the source of the new voice, and jumped up with delight.

"Daddy!" She threw her arms around him, hanging on fiercely.

"Well, hello Lily!" Her father spun her around, then set her feet back on the ground to lean in and give Mrs. Evan's a kiss.

"Welcome home darling!" Mrs. Evans smiled at him as they broke apart.

"Petunia! You're getting so… tall!" Mr. Evans hugged his first born, a bit stiffly.

"Welcome home, father." Petunia said dully.

"Now, I believe that some one has a birthday coming up, but I just can't remember who…" Mr. Evans scratched his head thoughtfully. "Well, I sure wish that I could remember who that person was, because if I can't, then I'll just have to take that new bicycle on the train back to the store."

Lily practically jumped up and down with excitement. She bit her lip to keep from yelling 'it's me Daddy, my birthday's in four days!'.

"Rebecca," he turned to his wife, "Do you know who it could be?" Mrs. Evans grinned, but shook her head, and Mr. Evans gave a great sigh. "Petunia, any ideas? No? Well, I guess I'll just have to take it back…"

Lily felt an odd tingling sensation in her ears for a minute, as the excitement built. Suddenly, as she reached out for her father's hand, light puffs of steam rose from her ears.

"Is it you darl—ing?" Mr. Evans faltered as he looked down at her. "Lily, are you feeling alright?"

"Yes Daddy, I feel fine! But it's me! I'll be eleven in four days!"

"Rebecca… what do you suppose…"

Both of Lily's parents turned to look at her, while little puffs of steam continued to emit from her ears. Lily felt her face becoming red.

"What?" Lily asked meekly, quailing under the inquisitive stares.

"Lily, you had, there was smoke or something coming out of your… but that's riddiculus. It must have been the lighting Harold." Mrs. Evans insisted.

Mr. Evans ran his hands over his eyes. "Yes, dear, it must have been. Now, Lily, how about that bike?"

…………………………………………………………………………………………

"Lily dear, wake up darling." Mrs. Evans gently shook her daughter's shoulder.

Lily groaned, but rolled over with a grin on her face. Eleven, what an age!

"Happy birthday!" Mrs. Evans kissed Lily of the forehead. "Do you feel older?"

"Actually, Mummy, yes I do. Some thing feels much more sophisticated about being eleven! Something tells me that it's special." Lily smiled. It was true, there was a force around her, and she could feel the change. Something incredible was brewing for her, though she wasn't sure what, exactly, that something was.

"Well, my newly sophisticated daughter, how about getting yourself dressed and coming downstairs… I've made chocolate chip pancakes, you favorite."

"Mmm. Sounds great!" Lily said enthusiastically, sitting up in her bed stretching. "I'll just find something to throw on…" Lily glanced towards her closet uncertainly. Most of the clothes in there wouldn't fit her anymore, for she'd gone through a growth spurt just a few months before and was now more tall and gangly than ever.

"Oh, don't worry about searching, I've already got you a brand new outfit for this day!" Mrs. Evans grinned proudly as she held up yet another sun dress, this one in a fluorescent shade of pink.

Lily felt her smile falter a bit, but quickly smiled. "Oh, Mummy! It's wonderful… I'll slip right into it and come right down!"

"Good, darling. Your Daddy's gone out to town, but he'll be back in a moment, now hurry along!" Mrs. Evans said excitedly as she strode quickly out of the bedroom, shutting the door behind her.

Lily stood up and held the dress up to her body to see how it would look, and groaned. It was terrible. The pink of the dress clashed tremendously with the red of her hair, making her skin look a sickly pink color. There was nothing to be done for it though, she had to wear it, as it was a gift from her mother for her birthday. Once dressed, Lily pulled her hair back, which did make it a bit better, then headed for the kitchen and her pancakes.

The kitchen smelled magnificent when Lily walked in, with the sweet fragrance of chocolate wafting up her nose. She eagerly sat down in her chair and put her napkin in her lap, waiting to be served.

"There you are!" Mrs. Evans smiled at her. "Here's your pancakes… hey, where'd that dress come from."

"What do you mean Mummy, you just gave me this dress in my room." Lily said simply as she reached for the syrup.

"No, the dress I gave you was pink, not green." Mrs. Evans insisted.

"This dress is pi—" Lily stopped as she looked down at the dress she was wearing. It _was_ green. "But, how?"

"Well Lily, you can just wear the dress I bought you any old time, after all it is your birthday, wear what you like. Besides, this one makes your eyes look lovely."

Lily was still puzzling over the perplexities of the color changing dress when her father walked through the door carrying several packages, which he sat beside Lily on the ground.

"Well, looks like no one forgot that today is your birthday!" Mr. Evans said enthusiastically, as he bent to kiss her on the cheek. "Happy birthday!"

"Thank you Daddy." Lily smiled at him, forgetting about the dress, and then dug into her pancakes.

"Oh, chocolate chip…?" Mr. Evans looked hopefully at Mrs. Evans.

"Don't think about it buddy, it's Lily's birthday, not yours! Here, have some plain pancakes." Mrs. Evans smiled at him and slid a stack onto his plate.

"Well, they still look delicious!"

"I made them, after all!"

"Right you are dear. Good morning Petunia!" Mr. Evans looked around at his oldest daughter as she came into the room.

"Father." Petunia nodded to him curtly, and sat stiffly across from Lily.

"Good morning Petunia!" Lily piped, smiling broadly at her. Nothing could make her day better than to make sure that she rubbed her good mood in Petunia's vainglorious nose in it.

Petunia looked daggers at her and poured herself a glass of milk. "Mum, could I just get half a grapefruit?" Petunia asked, eyeing the pancakes that probably had more calories than her diet would allow.

"The grapefruits are in the ice box dear, I'm just going to go get the camera for Lily's present opening!" Mrs. Evans took off her apron and promptly left the room.

"Fine, I'll get it myself." Petunia grumbled as she got up and shuffled to the fridge.

Meanwhile at the table Lily was shoveling the pancakes into her mouth at lightening speeds, trying to get to her waiting stack of presents. As soon as the last bit was in her mouth, she plopped down on the ground beside the presents.

Mr. Evans chuckled. "Anxious?"

Lily nodded vigorously as she reached for the first parcel. A flashbulb indicated that her mother had returned to the room with the camera. After quickly checking the tag, Lily ripped into the bright blue wrapping paper to reveal a small box containing a pair of beautiful white sandals with silver buckles.

"Oh! These are magnificent!" Lily shrieked as she pulled the shoes out of the box.

"Who sent them to you?" Mrs. Evans inquired as she took her fifth picture.

"Grandma Tula!"

"Well, they're just lovely! Petunia, why don't you come and watch your sister open her gifts!" Mrs. Evans exclaimed as the tall, slender girl pulled a knife out to slice her breakfast.

"Sure, why not? My nutrition isn't nearly as important." Petunia sat down and watched.

After much more opening and exclaiming, Lily was down to her last parcel. It was in an envelope, presumably a card, but what Lily found a bit odd about it was the way it was addressed:

Miss Lily A. Evans

Bedroom adjacent to the bath

9152 Magnolia Crescent

Surrey

Very to the point, very specific, very odd. There was no return address either. Lily turned the envelope over in her hand and examined the red seal on the back. It was a large letter 'H' surrounded by what appeared to be animals, but Lily couldn't quite distinguish what they were. Carefully, so as not to rip the paper, Lily opened the envelope. Inside, there were two pieces of paper, one very official looking, and one a list. It struck Lily as odd that she should get such a letter on her birthday, but she figured it was a fluke and unfolded the letter. At the top of the page was the crest that was in the seal, but this time Lily could make out the animals. There was a lion, a snake, a large raven, and a badger, a very strange assortment of animals. The letter was written in emerald green, and as Lily read it her jaw dropped and her eyes bulged.

"Lily, what is it?" Mr. Evans asked her, watching her reaction.

"It's… an acceptance letter! But it must be a mistake! Listen, _Dear Miss Evans, we are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry…_" Lily looked up at her parents uncertainly as she finished the letter. But they showed no sign of surprise, but were merely smiling at her broadly.

"Oh this is magnificent dear! Truly marvelous! Another witch in the family!" Mrs. Evans clapped her hands in excitement.

"A witch?" Lily asked, gaping.

"_Another_ witch?" Petunia demanded.

"Yes, and yes. My great aunt Ida was a witch, but no one else in the family has been. I used to go over to her house and spend hours listening to her tails, and watching her do magic. Me and your father have always suspected that you were, but this… this is proof!" Mrs. Evans exclaimed excitedly.

"So you mean, you knew? I mean, you knew there was a chance? Why didn't you tell me?" Lily asked, still staring at the letter in amazement.

"We didn't want to get your hopes up darling!" Mr. Evans told her, beaming.

"Oh, I see." Lily grinned. "But a witch! It sounds so… odd! What ever happened to Aunt Ida?" Lily looked at her mother inquisitively.

"Oh, she's still alive, in fact she's coming here tomorrow! We told her what we suspected, and she said she'd come! Oh, darling this is _marvelous!_" She threw her arms around Lily.

"Marvelous? _Marvelous!_?" Petunia shrieked in a high pitched voice. "Do you know what this means? It means that she's a… a monster… a freak! She'll never fit in again!"

"Like you care!" Lily retorted. "You only care that this will hurt _your_ reputation!"

"Girls!" Mr. Evans said over them. "Petunia, don't call your sister that! Besides, no one will have to know that she is a witch. She'll go to Hogwarts and we'll say she went to boarding school."

"But… but…" Petunia spluttered, obviously out of argument. "Fine!" With that she stormed up out of the kitchen.

Lily didn't care, let her be mad, it didn't matter! She was a witch, and she'd get to go to a school full of people just like her! She'd never be called odd, and she'd never be shunned and she'd never have to worry about Petunia… at least not during the year anyway. She'd been right, this was a very special age for her, and she could wait to see what was to come in the next year.

**_A/n: Well thank you all for reading this! I hope that you enjoyed it and will come back! Please feel free to ask anything, or tell me anything. Constructive criticism is always welcome. Please review! This is normally where I would comment to the reviews, but as this is a new story, I'll just say that I love you all and please come back for more! _**

_**Later Days**_

_**A.K.N.**_


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